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Salem, USA was in emotional shambles this week and we could not turn away from our screens. As we all wished for, the death of Will Horton wasn’t simply a plot device but the impetus to a few new solid storylines on the canvas. His grandmother Kate will be using work to keep busy which in turn will lead to more Basic Black story, Lucas’ sobriety will be coming back into question and Sami will be off in pursuit of vengeance and that’s not even mentioning the continuation of the (tottering along) serial killer storyline. This may not have been the exact reality that fans imagined, but we’re finally having a Days of our Lives with important stories to tell instead of speculations about elephant statues.
Now onto the highlights from Salem, USA this last week!
Week in Review for Days of Our Lives episodes airing October 12th – 16th, 2015.
Days of our Lives Week in Review: Sleep Well
I don’t think anyone went in to this last week expecting to not shed a tear. Salem had just lost a member of two of its most prominent families; Will Horton was murdered in cold blood by one of his own friends. Many fans are still up in arms over the creative decision to erase a core character from the canvas in such an anti-climactic way – and I admit to having been one of them – but after watching the ripples of grief make their way about town, I can say that I’ve enjoyed the direction the story’s taken. Whether or not this major change will affect the town in the long term remains to be seen but the new head writers seem to value continuity a little more than the last, I can’t imagine Will’s murder will be brushed under the rug when the next big event shakes the town.
Tragically, Gabi Hernandez was the first to come across Will’s body in the staged crime scene. It’s been weeks, but it still feels as if there hasn’t been enough of Gabi on our screens though Camila Banus made up for that in spades. The first person she called was her brother, Rafe, who arrived on the scene in disbelief. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, especially when Hope Brady joined her partner and had to see the lifeless form of her great-nephew (cousin?) on the floor. It really hit home when Lucas Horton was called over to the scene. In no time flat, Lucas was in denial before dissolving into tears over the loss of his firstborn. Again, after the captivating performance Bryan Datillo put on, one had to wonder just why Lucas wasn’t being utilized more.
One by one, Will’s large family is informed of his death and it did not get any easier. Sami Brady had already been in route to Salem for the anniversary of EJ Dimera’s death, so to get the news that she’ll have to bury her son as well must have been a crippling blow. Everyone expected the former town firecracker to roar into town with guns ablaze, but she came almost too quietly into the Salem Police Department where her family had gathered. Even with her mother, Marlena Evans in tears and Lucas doing his best to keep it together, Sami remained stone faced – which almost immediately tipped everyone off to their probably being trouble down the pipeline. The very definition of the calm before the storm, Sami made her rounds about town in a zombified state. Even in the morgue, gazing upon Will’s body, it was Lucas who shed more tears. In a warm touch on their torrid history, Sami and Lucas attempted to think up moments where their son was truly happy with them; custody battles, unstable homes and countless family dramas were permanent scars on Will’s short life. They both wished they could have done better by their first child.
Sami remains numb until she pops over to Will’s house. She can’t help but begin to tidy up the home, collapsing into tears when she comes up on the markers outlining where her son’s body once lay. I’d been worried that I had been all cried out by this point in the week but Sami’s wailing for Will forced more tears out, taking me right along with her into her grief. Being in the apartment broke the proverbial camel’s back for Sami and like the ride or die kind of girl she is, she marched right over to Chad Dimera’s room for vengeance. After learning of Will’s murder, Chad pieced together that Ben Weston was the murderer behind his frame job which lead to a skull fracture for everyone’s favorite pretty mob heir. Lying prone in a coma, Sami took the chance to smother her son’s suspected killer with a pillow until her mother caught her. Two mothers who both lost children of their own sat down for an extremely honest talk. Not as a shrink but as her mother, Marlena advised Sami to feel again even if it meant being doubled over in pain. Later, in an on old undeliverable letter from EJ, Sami finds holes that suspiciously sound as if her beloved was still alive. Sami’s twin, Eric gave the same advice in lieu of seeking revenge against Stefano Dimera whom she feels is indirectly responsible for Chad murdering Will, wanting her to focus instead on burying her son. But this wouldn’t be the Sami Brady we love if she wasn’t putting a man before her children! I kid, I kid… but only a little.
My only quip was that there should have been more flashbacks laced through these episodes. Will’s life wasn’t just his birth, his wedding then his death. There were so many other poignant moments they could have touched on without confusingly showcasing the many, many actors who had been in the role. Not to mention, how perfect would it have been to have Carrie and Austin Reed return to town for these two? For a good number of years, they were pretty much Will’s parents when Lucas and Sami couldn’t get their acts together. Next week seems to have a focus on the re-introduction of Andre Dimera, Shawn-Douglass Brady and Bo Brady which hopefully will not detract from this major loss. I’m hoping for the best.
Young Love, Forever Love
Photo Credit: © Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
As expected, this last week in Salem focused majorly on the untimely death of Will Horton but in the midst of the grief was a bit of warmth. Adrienne and Justin Kiriakis have been on rocky ground for months now after affairs, mistrust and distance took their tolls on the longtime couple. They’d recently been making an honest yet awkward attempt at rekindling their romance, but the results have been iffy at best.
A few weeks ago, Adrienne had received a surprise call from her mother Jo Johnson sadly informing her daughter of her contracting breast cancer. The good news being that the doctors had caught her in time, the bad news being that the women in her family have the potential to possess the gene that carries the deadly disease. A distraught Adrienne immediately took the test to determine if she was a carrier – and we learned that she in fact was, only pushing her further into her worries.
Until recently, only Kayla Brady and Lucas Horton knew of Adrienne’s health scare. She’d gone on dates with Justin in the time between but as she’d mentioned, it was all very casual, they were skating around a lot of their issues still and that included her chance of carrying the mutated gene. As a friend and her doctor, Kayla wanted Adrienne to quickly move onto deciding on her next steps but Adrienne was in denial mode. Now with Sonny Kiriakis back in town, it seemed as though she was set to hold onto her secret in favor of getting her son through his loss. Or so it seemed.
Justin and Adrienne’s love story is way before my time, but from what I’ve read up on, their status as a super couple all these decades is more than warranted. After crying all week long with this show, I didn’t expect to tear up when Adrienne sobbed that she’d loved Justin since she was 17 years old. Ages on soap operas are typically fluid but clearly Adrienne and Justin are mature adults and with young adult children, so to be in love since the age of 17 is an incredible feat! Even through rape, patricide and fertility issues! The most poignant moment was not that Justin blew off his meeting with work and with Eve Donovan to check in with Adrienne, but that Adrienne prefaced her revelation by telling Justin that no matter where they ended up, she couldn’t move forward without being honest to him. Although Lucas and Adrienne were fun at the start, the idea of Justin and Adrienne existing permanently apart is extremely sad.
I hope that her filling her ex-husband in on her diagnosis is the beginning of her re-building her trust in him as well as the start of a gradual, realistic reconciliation. This set of Kiriakeses were neglected for far too many years, so with them both back on contract after decades and a creative redirection, I would hope they’re done right again. Justin and Adrienne have the potential to really represent DAYS’ heart if they’re given the chance.
What’s to Come
This coming week on Days of Our Lives, Will is laid to rest, Aiden makes deadly plans for Hope, Sonny finally leaves forever, Steve is captured in Mexico, Lani has some questions for Abe and Shawn-Douglass returns to Salem!
As usual, if I missed something you really wanted to talk about or if I missed something important in my recap, let’s start a discussion! Comment below, tweet me and let’s chat!
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